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Colors of the Universe

COLOUR SCIENCE · EXPLORE · CREATE

Explore the cosmos. Discover what its colours reveal.

Travel through a growing atlas of stars, planets, moons, galaxies and nebulae. Inspect images and models, understand how each view was made, and turn your discoveries into palettes.

A curated atlas of selected cosmic objects—not a complete inventory or a map of their physical positions.

An atlas you can explore by colour

76 objects · 109 views · 636 colour samples · Catalogue updated 25 October 2026

Try Mars, Orion Nebula, M31 or a HEX colour. Drag to rotate. Scroll or pinch to zoom. Select a point to see its object and colour source. Points are arranged by display colour, not location in space.

Stars 17

Compare stellar colour studies and explore the differences between observed images and temperature-based models.

Galaxies 10

Explore whole-galaxy views alongside selected regions. Every palette remains linked to the image or model it came from.

Nebulae & remnants 12

Explore striking structures and see which colours follow visible-light observations and which represent other data.

Black-hole environments 2

Explore observations and models of surrounding material, with clear explanations of what the colours represent.

One object. More than one view.

Keep the object fixed and compare its available representations. The palette updates with the selected view, and its source stays attached.

From a colour point to a world

Select a sample, open its object, and inspect a supported model. Rotate the view without losing the image, palette or source information.

Bring a little space into your next idea

Collect colours from selected views, then build a gradient, pattern, design or room scheme. Your palette keeps a record of where each colour came from.

What can we see around a black hole?

The visible features in a black-hole view may come from surrounding material, a data colour scale or a simulation. They are not a photograph of a solid surface inside the event horizon.

Why do stars have different colours?

Stellar colour is linked to temperature: hotter stars tend towards blue-white, while cooler stars appear redder. A calculated colour study must still be distinguished from a processed telescope image.

Sources: Stars in an Exoplanet World

Why can the same object look different?

Images can use different filters, observing bands and processing choices. Compare the source notes before treating a colour change as a physical change in the object.

Sources: Hubble FAQs — image processing and colour, Visualization: From Energy to Image

Why is a galaxy not just one swatch?

A galaxy contains many components, including stars, gas and dust. A palette can summarize a selected view, but it cannot replace the structure visible in that image.

Sources: Galaxies

How does the atlas connect to colour science?

Use the wavelength explorer to study spectral colour, the prism lab to explore dispersion, and the CMB Colour Lab to investigate a different kind of mapped sky data.

Questions

Is this a map of the whole Universe?

No. It is a growing, curated collection arranged for colour exploration. Positions in the colour atlas do not show astronomical distances.

Are all space-image colours what human eyes would see?

No. Some views approximate visible appearance; others assign colours to measurements or combine observing bands. Each representation explains its approach.

Sources: Hubble FAQs — image processing and colour, Visualization: From Energy to Image

Do black holes have a surface colour?

A black-hole image does not reveal a coloured solid surface. Observable surrounding material and image-processing choices help determine the colours shown.

Sources: Black Holes

Are all 3D models measured reconstructions?

No. Each model identifies whether it uses observed texture or shape information, calculated geometry or an illustrative reconstruction. Unknown detail stays labelled as unknown.

Can I use these palettes in my projects?

Use the palette tools to create and export design colours. Image and model downloads carry their own source information and usage conditions.

Why can a palette change when I switch views?

The palette belongs to the selected representation. Changing the source image or model can change its sampled colours without changing the object’s identity.

Sources & colour meaning

Approximate visible appearance
A documented attempt to approximate visible appearance. Processing and display settings still matter.
Visible-light composite
A colour image assembled from visible-light observations. See the source for its filters and processing.
Enhanced visible colour
Colour or contrast has been adjusted to reveal differences. This is not an eye-equivalent view.
Mapped non-visible data
Colours represent measurements outside human vision. The legend explains the mapping.
Multiwavelength composite
This view combines observing bands. Read the mapping before interpreting a colour.
Calculated visible-colour model
A calculated preview based on stated inputs and assumptions—not a photograph.
Artist’s concept / illustrative model
An explanatory reconstruction. Unobserved details are not measurements.
Creative interpretation
A design derived from the selected representation. It is not a scientific colour measurement.

Every image keeps its publisher’s credit and licence: NASA images are not copyrighted; ESA/Hubble, ESA/Webb and ESO images are licensed under CC BY 4.0 and are credited on every view. No ESA, ESO or NASA endorsement is implied. Images were resized once for the web; colours are measured from the published file by k-means clustering in OKLab (algorithm pcke-oklab-kmeans-1), and star colours are calculated from published temperatures with the CIE 1931 2° observer.

Catalogue pcke-cosmos-2026-10-25: 79 objects (76 with a colour view), 109 views, 636 colour samples and 44 3D models. Download the catalogue (JSON).